The Full Nelson (Jordy, that is)

Losing Jordy Nelson for the season to a torn ACL has shown the true colors of the Packers team throughout. The team was a Super Bowl favorite entering the preseason at the beginning of August. Now at the start of September, even without arguably their best wide out, the team is still listed as one of the best bets to take the Lombardi trophy this year.

Why is that? Well if you have a look throughout the lineup, the team packs a punch from top to bottom. Led by a now healthy Aaron Rodgers, the offense is still one of the most exciting in the NFL. With another year of experience under former Alabama standout Eddie Lacy’s belt, the young back is slated to have a career year. Meanwhile at wide out, the Pack will have Randall Cobb, Ty Montgomery and Davante Adams. Then to add insurance, the team brought in veteran receiver James Jones.

Questions arouse quickly after Nelson went down at Heinz Field, but Mike McCarthy didn’t panic. His potent office will still be very strong despite losing that key piece. So much so that they are still among the favorites to walk through the NFC. With the Packers among the top contenders for Super Bowl 50 it’s no surprise that this week’s NFL betting line loves them in Week 1 against the Bears.

In past years, the Pack has been strong on one side of the ball but weaker on the other. This year the pressure on Rodgers and the offense should be considerably relieved.

The staples of Clay Matthews, veteran Julius Peppers, Mike Daniels and Sam Shields will be back on the tundra. The big story though in 2015 will be the young guns in the secondary. Not only will safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix look to build on his very solid rookie campaign, Quinten Rollins and Damarious Randall will also be joining him on a weekly basis. Like Clinton-Dix they’re going from the draft to the turf and are expecting big things in their debut year.

Rollins is a former basketball player and with a 36.5 inch vertical leap, he will be a very welcome addition to the Pack attack. Meanwhile, joining him at corner will be Damarious Randall out of Arizona State. The first rounder had a very impressive interception in his opening preseason matchup and his speed is a huge asset. The team needed to get quicker on defense and they did just that in the 2015 NFL Draft.